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Key Features:
Etymology: Athene ( Gr.), from Pallas Athene, the Greek goddess
of wisdom; brama (L.), a Latinized version of Brahma - the Hindu
god of creation, because it was fi rst described to science from
Pondicherry in India. Hence, in the name of this owl, we see
amalgamation of two rich ancient cultures - Greek and Indian!
Cultural Aspects:
Nest Sites:
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Nests are seen in natural tree hollows, crevices in ruins, holes
in walls, gaps under roofs or in hollows in earth cuttings; This is
a highly adaptive species. Nests is sparsely lined with grass,
sticks, etc. Mynas and parakeets compete for the same nest
sites.
Habitat: Semi-arid hilly country, sparse deciduous forests, near
cropland, ancient groves, ruins, often near human habitation and
water bodies. Avoid dense forests.
Distribution: From SE Iran, through Aghanistan and India up to
NE Indian states and Bangladesh. Up to 1400 m in the Himalayas.
Race A.b. indica occurs north of 20 degree
latitude and race A.b.brama occurs south of 20 degrees
latitude.
Status: Resident. Common.
Insects, worms, molluscs, crabs, arachnids (scorpions, etc.),
lizards, geckos, frogs, rodents, shrews, bats and birds. They often
hunt near light source from lamp posts during the night. Prey is
swallowed whole and the pellets containing hair, feathers, bones
and scales are expelled after 24 to 36 hours.
Food (Some food items are depicted below)
Crown spotted.
Rounded prominet head lacks tufts.
Iris golden yellow.
Bill horny, greenish;
Cere greenish brown-dusky.
Feet yellowish greenish. Soles pale.
Talons dark.
Greyish brown overall; Pale below.
Rounded wings.
Barred tail.
Behaviour: Nocturnal and crepuscular, but also hunt during day.
Keep in pairs or family groups of 4 to 5 in crevices, hollows or
amidst foliage. Guard territory all the year. Have a funny habit of
bobbing head and rotating it in a curious and clownish manner.
Flight is undulating. Tolerate human presence.
The owlet was depicted on the coin of Menander (135 BC). It also
features on postal stamps. In India, the time of dusk when the
owlets become active is called Pingala Vel – The time of the owlet,
in Marathi language.
Eggs - white, ovoid.
Breeding phenology:
Cockroach species.
Female is larger than the male.
Flat facial disc in side view.Forward facing eyes.
Pattern on the upper wing. Pattern on the under wing.
House Gecko - minus tail! Moth species. Earth worm species.
Field mouse.
Callotes species. Caterpillar species.
Chicks of 3 days. 1.5 weeks. 3 weeks. 3.5 weeks.
4 weeks. 4.5 weeks. 5 weeks - just fl edged.
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FACT FILE: Spotted OwletAthene brama (Temminck, 1821). Type
locality: Pondicherry and west coast of India.
Pingla (Marathi); Ulloo (Hindi); Malpatar; Goobe (Kannada);
Pagadigante (Telugu); Pulli andai (Tamil).
Size: 21 cm. Weight: 240 g.Wing: Male – 141 -158 cm;
Female – 151 -157 cm. Breeding season:
January to March. Clutch: 1 – 4 eggs per year
(rarely 5). Egg: White, roundish-
ovoid. 32.2 x 27.1 mm (Baker). 10 – 13 g.
Incubation: 31 - 32 d. By both, mainly by female.
Fledging: 31-32 d. Fledging success: 72.7 % (1.6 chicks).
Post-fl edging dependence: 8 months.
Call: Loudly vocal at dawn and dusk more when breeding, even
during the day. Contact and territorial calls are harsh chuckles,
screeches and hisses. Chirrr, churr, chirrurr, cheewak, chweeek,
churr.
www.elafoundation.org
Amazing Facts
Related Species
Fungal infection of the eye impairs vision.
Owlet entering a nest box with two eggs inside. Owl depicted as
vehicle of goddess Laxmi.
At night, the owls hunt near a source of light making them
vulnerable to electrocution.
Little Owl Athene noctua.
Burrowing Owl Athene cunicularia.
Athene brama indica - a northern race.
Barred Jungle Owlet Glaucidium radiatum.
Spotted Owlet Order: Strigiiformes Family: Strigidae Status:
Resident
Conservation ThroughEducation &ResearchELA FOUNDATION
THREATS: Habitat loss. Tree felling has negetive eff ect on the
hollow nesting owlets. Agricul-tural pesticides can reduce prey
base and enter the food chain. Electrocution and hunting are other
risks. We have recorded an instance where the owlet was preyed upon
by the Mottled Wood Owl Strix ocellata.
Conservation: Included in Schedule I of the Indian Wild Life
(Protection) Act. Nest boxes can be deployed and are accepted by
the adaptive owlets. Education of people to convey the eff ective
insect and pest controlling role of these owlets can go a long way
towards their conservation.
Intermittently close the eyes as precautionary measure while
handling prey like rodents.
The Spotted Owlet is capable of rotating the head at an amazing
speed, as if like a top!
Hunt prey like earthworms that they swallow like noodles!
Economic Importance
Spotted Owlets eat atleast 7 orders of insects, including grub
and caterpillars; atleast 7 species of scorpions, three species of
Galeodes species and 11 species of rodents that are categorized as
crop pests. The benefi cial agro-economic role that the owls play
in our lives is aptly depicted in the traditional Warli painting
above, where the owl is shown perching on a tree waiting for an
opportunity to prey upon a rodent that is eating grain.
Editor: Satish Pande. Photographs: Satish Pande,
Prashant Deshpande, Suruchi Pande, Niranjan Sant, Chandrashekhar
Bapat, Amit Pawashe, Alka Padhye. Reuven Yosef, Abhiram
Rajandekar.
Inputs on Kannada names: Dr. Mandakini Vartak.
Design: Kiran Velhankar, MediaNext Infoprocessors Pvt. Ltd.
Copyright and Published by: Ela Foundation, C-9, Bhosale Park,
Sahakarnagar-2, Pune 411009. March, 2013. An OENSL initiative.
www.elafoundation.org.
References: *Ali & Ripley (1969). *Satish Pande. (2010)
Latin Names of Indian Birds Explained. Book made and Funded by Ela
Foundation. Published by Published by Oxford University Press and
Bombay Natural History Society. *Pande Satish, et al (2011) ZooKeys
132: 75–88. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.132.1346. * Pande Satish et al.
(2007). J Raptor Research 41 (1): 26-33.
Recommended citation: Pande, Satish (2013). Spotted Owlet. Ela
File 5: 1- 6. Ela Foundation, Pune.
Dr. S
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